Ivory Coast stuns Senegal, advances to AFCON quarter-finals

Ivory Coast, the host nation, pulled off a surprising victory against Senegal in the Africa Cup of Nations last 16 on Monday, securing a spot in the quarter-finals.

Despite a challenging start in the group stage, where they suffered a 4-0 loss to Equatorial Guinea, the Ivorian team rallied under interim coach Emerse Fae after the dismissal of veteran French coach Jean-Louis Gasset.

Facing the reigning champions, Senegal, Ivory Coast managed to level the score 1-1 in regular time and ultimately secured a 5-4 victory in a penalty shootout.

The match saw Senegal take an early lead with Habib Diallo’s goal in the fourth minute.

Sadio Mane’s challenge on Ibrahim Sangare and a contentious penalty incident involving Ismaila Sarr added to the intensity.

The Ivorians earned a late penalty through a VAR review, allowing Franck Kessie to equalize and force extra time.

With no further goals, the outcome was decided by penalties, where Ivory Coast emerged victorious, with Senegal’s Moussa Niakhate as the sole miss.

Ivory Coast’s triumph sets up a quarter-final clash against either Mali or Burkina Faso in Bouake on Saturday. Meanwhile, in an earlier match on Monday, Cape Verde secured their first-ever AFCON knockout win, defeating Mauritania 1-0 with a late Ryan Mendes penalty.

Cape Verde advances to face either Morocco or South Africa in the quarter-finals.

Cape Verde’s coach, Pedro ‘Bubista’ Brito, expressed pride in their achievement and remains focused on reaching the semi-finals in their AFCON journey.